Former Welsh Rugby Union boss David Moffett has called for Wales’ four professional sides to ditch the Vodacom United Rugby Championship and play in a new Celtic league, without South African or Italian teams on board.
Cardiff, Scarlets, Dragons and Ospreys are all struggling in the 16-team URC, with Ospreys currently the highest placed in ninth. The Welsh sides have also suffered heavy defeats in South Africa, such as Cardiff’s 40-3 loss to the Stormers after Scarlets were smashed 57-12 by the Vodacom Bulls.
According to reports on Wales Online, Moffett, who drove the initiative of Welsh regional rugby in 2003 during his time as WRU chief executive, has called for it to be scrapped and replaced by a new four-club elite of Newport, Cardiff, Swansea and Llanelli.
“I think we can all agree regional rugby, as originally conceived, is no longer fit for purpose, other than to prepare players for the international team. The fans voted with their feet from the very beginning. It’s time to stop flogging a dead horse,” the 74-year-old said.
“The solution is ditch the regional concept and have four teams – Newport, Cardiff, Swansea and Llanelli. Offer them club contracts with criteria and KPIs, then WRU gets out of the way and lets them run themselves in a league without South Africa and Italy. Four Welsh, four Irish, two Scottish, home and away.
“I am just being realistic. The regional system has not and will not work in Wales. The Welsh are way too parochial for that. The public will not buy the regional concept. The people who really matter have a say every single day. The fans have spoken and you ignore the fans at your peril. That’s something I understand much better about Welsh rugby than I did.”
